Positive Reinforcement training, also now known as clicker training, is based primarily on the principles of learning developed by behavioral scientist B. F. Skinner in the 1930's.

These principles are known as operant conditioning because dogs (or any other animal, including humans) can operate on (manipulate) their environment with their behavior.  They can make things happen, good or bad, by choosing behaviors that are either rewarded or punished. (It is important to note, however, that by punishment we never mean physical punishment.)

When a dog does something that we like, we can increase the likelihood of it occurring again, by positively reinforcing (rewarding) - giving the dog something of value to him, such as food, play, praise or petting.  In other words, the dog’s behavior makes something desirable happen.

When undesirable behavior occurs, we can decrease the likelihood of it happening again by ignoring it (not reinforcing or rewarding it), through negative punishment (again, physical punishment is not intended) i.e., removing something that the dog wants, such as interaction, attention, treats, or play, or by managing the dog’s environment.  Think of negative as taking away, rather than something bad.

Positive trainers believe that as the (supposedly) more intelligent species, we can get our dogs to voluntarily offer us the behavior we want without the use of force. When the desired behavior is offered, we reward it.  Eventually, we can put the behavior on cue (give it a name: sit, down, come, etc) so that the dogs will offer it when asked.  Finally, the use of food as a reward is phased out.

A lot can go wrong when "traditional" or "correction" training is used. It can cause aggression and doesn’t provide clear information for your dog to act on. It tells dogs what you don’t want, but provides little or no information as to what you do want.   Unless you have perfect timing it’s more likely that you will punish a behavior that you didn’t intend to.  It is an ineffective training tool at best.

The clicker is a small metal device that emits a short, neutral sound and is used to communicate to the dog exactly what it is doing right.  When the click is followed by a reward, (as it always is!), the dog becomes an eager and willing participant in the training game as he figures out what we want (how to operate on his environment).  Think of the click as an instantaneous, precise signal that tells the dog that he’s on the right track-a "Bingo-you got it!".

Do you have to use a clicker to train your dog positively?  No.  Although the clicker is the most effective, the word "yes" can be substituted.  Will you need to use the clicker and treats forever (one of the most commonly asked questions we hear!) Absolutely not-it’s a training tool. Once the behavior is learned (put on cue) the tools are no longer needed.

Clicker training gives you an effective way to help you build a relationship with your dog that is based on cooperation and trust rather than coercion and fear.

Positive Reinforcement training is a scientific method, but it’s not rocket science! It’s easy, it’s fun, and it works!